US20140365432A1 - Dropsite for shared content - Google Patents

Abstract

Embodiments are provided for a dropsite. In some embodiments, information is received on a creation location and a date and time of creation of a content item, and a determination is made if (i) the date and time of creation is within a predefined span of time, and (ii) the creation location is within a predefined geographical area to permit association of the content item with a shared folder whose inclusion criteria match said date and time and creation location.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
• Various embodiments relate generally to a dropsite for shared content.
BACKGROUND
• With various web and mobile applications, a user is able to indiscriminately upload photos of, and post reviews for, particular restaurants, stores or other establishments. Although such photos and critiques are intended to educate the general public on the restaurant or establishment in question, they are often not validated as having actually been captured at the restaurant. Moreover, the photos and reviews are not organized in any meaningful way to provide an accurate depiction of an actual experience at the restaurant or venue at any particular snapshot in time. As such, such reviews and photos are disjointed at best, and at worst wholly inaccurate.
• Accordingly, there is a need to both capture and share a user experience in an organized way.
SUMMARY
• Embodiments are provided for a dropsite. In some embodiments, information is received on a creation location and a date and time of creation of a content item, and a determination is made if (i) the date and time of creation is within a predefined span of time, and (ii) the creation location is within a predefined geographical area to permit association of the content item with a shared folder whose inclusion criteria match said date and time and creation location.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• The above and other aspects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
• FIG. 1 is an exemplary system for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 2 is an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 3 is an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 6A is an exemplary schematic representation for storage of data for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 6B is an exemplary schematic representation for storage of data for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 7 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 8 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 9 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 10 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention;
• FIG. 11 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention; and
• FIG. 12 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE
• Methods, systems, and computer readable mediums for a dropsite for shared content are provided. A dropsite is a shared grouping of content items, such as a shared folder of content items, associated with a predefined geographical area and a predefined timespan. Upload to the shared folder of a content item may be permitted when the content item was created, generated, or captured with a date and time within the predefined span of time and at a location within the predefined geographical area for the shared folder. In this way, the shared folder may capture a shared experience allowing for meaningful social interaction between participants and viewers regarding the experience.
• By way of example, a dropsite may be created for a bounded geographical area around a stadium, including a distance of twenty feet surrounding the stadium. The dropsite may be established for a series of championship games played at the stadium and the dropsite timespan may start the day before the championship games and run through the night of the last game to ensure the capture of the festivities/celebration through the last game. The dropsite may be discoverable by the public, and a device that comes near or within the geographical area may be notified as to existence of the dropsite as well as become eligible to contribute and access the dropsite. When the user enters the dropsite geographical area, the may be able to upload content created within the dropsite geographical area during a particular span of time. Content items uploaded may be clustered together using various parameters (e.g., by locations within a venue, time, etc.) and presented for display to a user's device, so that the user may view the experience as it unfolded at the dropsite geographical area.
• In some embodiments, discovery, contribution, and/or access to the shared folder may be permitted with a device that is or has been near and/or within the predefined geographical area, an authenticated account, and/or any other identifier indicating authorization to discover, contribute, and/or access the shared folder. The shared folder may be publicly discoverable with a device near and/or within the predefined geographic area. Particular shared folders for dropsites may be discoverable and/or accessible for a set of users, authenticated accounts, and/or devices.
• For purposes of description and simplicity, methods, systems and computer readable mediums will be described for a dropsite that utilizes a shared folder. The term “shared folder” is used herein to refer broadly to a variety of mechanisms, data structures, and methods for associating content items together to form a group, including, but not limited to, a virtual collection, an album, a directory, a lightweight share, and/or any other grouping of content items.
• For purposes of description and simplicity, methods, systems and computer readable mediums will be described for a content storage and management service, and in particular, a dropsite for shared content. However, the terms “content storage service” and “content management system” are used herein to refer broadly to a variety of storage providers and management service providers as well as handling a wide variety of types of content, files, portions of files, and/or other types of data. Those with skill in the art will recognize that the methods, systems, and mediums described may be used for a variety of storage providers/services and types of content, files, portions of files, and/or other types of data.
• FIG. 1 is an exemplary system for a dropsite in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. Elements inFIG. 1, including, but not limited to, first clientelectronic device102a, second clientelectronic device102b, andcontent management system100 may communicate by sending and/or receiving data overnetwork106. Network106 may be any network, combination of networks, or network devices that can carry data communication. For example,network106 may be any one or any combination of LAN (local area network), WAN (wide area network), telephone network, wireless network, point-to point network, star network, token ring network, hub network, or any other configuration.
• Network106 can support any number of protocols, including but not limited to TCP/IP (Transfer Control Protocol and Internet Protocol), HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), WAP (wireless application protocol), etc. For example, first clientelectronic device102aand second clientelectronic device102b(collectively102) may communicate withcontent management system100 using TCP/IP, and, at a higher level, use browser116 to communicate with a web server (not shown) atcontent management system100 using HTTP. Examples of implementations of browser116, include, but are not limited to, Google Inc. Chrome™ browser, Microsoft Internet Explorer®, Apple Safari®, Mozilla Firefox, and Opera Software Opera.
• A variety of client electronic devices102 can communicate withcontent management system100, including, but not limited to, desktop computers, mobile computers, mobile communication devices (e.g., mobile phones, smart phones, tablets), televisions, set-top boxes, and/or any other network enabled device. Although two clientelectronic devices102aand102bare illustrated for description purposes, those with skill in the art will recognize that any number of devices may be used and supported bycontent management system100. Client electronic devices102 may be used to create, access, modify, and managefiles110aand110b(collectively110) (e.g. files, file segments, images, etc.) stored locally withinfile system108aand108b(collectively108) on client electronic device102 and/or stored remotely with content management system100 (e.g., within data store118). For example, clientelectronic device102amay accessfile110bstored remotely withdata store118 ofcontent management system100 and may or may not storefile110blocally withinfile system108aon clientelectronic device102a. Continuing with the example, clientelectronic device102amay temporarily storefile110bwithin a cache (not shown) locally within clientelectronic device102a, make revisions to file110b, and the revisions tofile110bmay be communicated and stored indata store118 ofcontent management system100. Optionally, a local copy of thefile110amay be stored on clientelectronic device102a.
• Client devices102 may capture, record, and/or store content items, such as image files110. Client devices102 may have a camera138 (e.g.,138aand138b) to capture and record digital images and/or videos. For example, camera138 may capture and record images and store metadata with the images. Metadata may include, but is not limited to, the following: creation time timestamp, geolocation, orientation, rotation, title, and/or any other attributes or data relevant to the captured image.
• Metadata values may be stored as attribute112 name-value pairs, tag-value pairs, and/or any other method to associate the metadata with the file and easily identify the type of metadata. In some embodiments, attributes112 may be tag-value pairs defined by a particular standard, including, but not limited to, Exchangeable Image File Format (Exif), JPEG File Interchange Format (Jfif), and/or any other standard.\
• A time normalization module146 (e.g.,146aand146b) may be used to normalize dates and times stored with a content item. An example of time normalization is provided in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/888,118, entitled “Date and Time Handling,” filed on May 6, 2013, claiming the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/801,318, entitled “Date and Time Handling,” filed on Mar. 15, 2013, and both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. The time normalization module146, counterparttime normalization module148, and/or any combination thereof may be used to normalize dates and times stored for content items. The normalized times and dates may be used to sort, group, perform comparisons, perform basic math, and/or cluster content items.
• An organization module136 (e.g.,136aand136b) may be used to organize content items (e.g., image files) into clusters, organize content items to provide samplings of content items for display within user interfaces, and/or retrieve organized content items for presentation. An example of organization is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/888,186, entitled “Presentation and Organization of Content,” filed May 6, 2013, claiming the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/794,184, entitled “Presentation and Organization of Content,” filed on Mar. 15, 2013, and both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
• The organization module136 may utilize any clustering algorithm. The organization module136 may be used to identify similar images for clusters in order to organize content items for presentation within user interfaces on devices102 andcontent management system100. Similarity rules may be defined to create one or more numeric representations embodying information on similarities between each of the content items in accordance with the similarity rules. The organization module136 may use the numeric representation as a reference for similarity between content items in order to cluster the content items.
• In some embodiments, content items may be organized into clusters to aid with retrieval of similar content items in response to search requests. For example,organization module136amay identify first and second images are similar and may be group the images together in a cluster.Organization module136amay process image files to determine clusters independently or in conjunction with counterpart organization module (e.g.,140 and/or136b). In other embodiments,organization module136amay only provide clusters identified with counterpart organization modules (e.g.,140 and/or136b) for presentation. Continuing with the example, processing of image files to determine clusters may be an iterative process that is executed upon receipt of new content items and/or new similarity rules.
• In some embodiments, a search module142 on client device102 is provided withcounterpart search module144 oncontent management system144 to support search for content items. A search request may be received by search module142 and/or144 that requests a content item. In some embodiments, the search may be handled by searching metadata and/or attributes assigned to content items during the provision of management services. For example, cluster markers stored with images may be used to find images by date. In particular, cluster markers may indicate an approximate time or average time for the images stored with the cluster marker in some embodiments, and the marker may be used to speed the search and/or return the search results with the contents of the cluster with particular cluster markers.
• Files110 managed bycontent management system100 may be stored locally within file system108 of respective devices102 and/or stored remotely withindata store118 of content management system100 (e.g., files134 in data store118).Content management system100 may provide synchronization of files managed bycontent management system100.Attributes112aand112b(collectively112) or other metadata may be stored with files110. For example, a particular attribute may be stored with the file to track files locally stored on client devices102 that are managed and/or synchronized bycontent management system100. In some embodiments, attributes112 may be implemented using extended attributes, resource forks, or any other implementation that allows for storing metadata with a file that is not interpreted by a file system. In particular, anattribute112aand112bmay be a content identifier for a file. For example, the content identifier may be a unique or nearly unique identifier (e.g., number or string) that identifies the file.
• By storing a content identifier with the file, a file may be tracked. For example, if a user moves the file to another location within the file system108 hierarchy and/or modifies the file, then the file may still be identified within the local file system108 of a client device102. Any changes or modifications to the file identified with the content identifier may be uploaded or provided for synchronization and/or version control services provided by thecontent management system100.
• A stand-alonecontent management application114aand114b(collectively114), client application, and/or third-party application may be implemented to provide a user interface for a user to interact withcontent management system100. Content management application114 may expose the functionality provided withcontent management interface104 and accessible modules for device102. Instead or in addition,web browser116aand116b(collectively116) may be used to display a web page front end for a client application that can providecontent management100 functionality exposed/provided withcontent management interface104.
• Content management system100 may allow a user with an authenticated account to store content, as well as perform management tasks, such as retrieve, modify, browse, synchronize, and/or share content with other accounts. Various embodiments ofcontent management system100 may have elements, including, but not limited to, contentmanagement interface module104,account management module120,synchronization module122,collections module124,sharing module126,file system abstraction128,data store118, andorganization module140. The content managementservice interface module104 may expose the server-side or back end functionality/capabilities ofcontent management system100. For example, a counter-part user interface (e.g., stand-alone application, client application, etc.) on client electronic devices102 may be implemented using contentmanagement service interface104 to allow a user to perform functions offered by modules ofcontent management system100. In particular,content management system100 may have anorganization module140 for identifying similar content items for clusters and samples of content items for presentation within user interfaces.
• The user interface offered on client electronic device102 may be used to create an account for a user and authenticate a user to use an account usingaccount management module120. Theaccount management module120 of the content management service may provide the functionality for authenticating use of an account by a user and/or a client electronic device102 with username/password, device identifiers, and/or any other authentication method.Account information130 can be maintained indata store118 for accounts. Account information may include, but is not limited to, personal information (e.g., an email address or username), account management information (e.g., account type, such as “free” or “paid”), usage information, (e.g., file edit history), maximum storage space authorized, storage space used, content storage locations, security settings, personal configuration settings, content sharing data, etc. An amount of content management may be reserved, allotted, allocated, stored, and/or may be accessed with an authenticated account. The account may be used to access files110 withindata store118 for the account and/or files110 made accessible to the account that are shared from another account.Account module120 can interact with any number of other modules ofcontent management system100.
• An account can be used to store content, such as documents, text files, audio files, video files, etc., from one or more client devices102 authorized on the account. The content can also include folders of various types with different behaviors, or other mechanisms of grouping content items together. For example, an account can include a public folder that is accessible to any user. The public folder can be assigned a web-accessible address. A link to the web-accessible address can be used to access the contents of the public folder. In another example, an account can include a photos folder that is intended for photos and that provides specific attributes and actions tailored for photos; an audio folder that provides the ability to play back audio files and perform other audio related actions; or other special purpose folders. An account can also include shared folders or group folders that are linked with and available to multiple user accounts. The permissions for multiple users may be different for a shared folder.
• Content items (e.g., files110) can be stored indata store118.Data store118 can be a storage device, multiple storage devices, or a server. Alternatively,data store118 can be cloud storage provider or network storage accessible via one or more communications networks.Content management system100 can hide the complexity and details from client devices102 by using a file system abstraction128 (e.g., a file system database abstraction layer) so that client devices102 do not need to know exactly where the content items are being stored by thecontent management system100. Embodiments can store the content items in the same folder hierarchy as they appear on client device102. Alternatively,content management system100 can store the content items in various orders, arrangements, and/or hierarchies.Content management system100 can store the content items in a network accessible storage (SAN) device, in a redundant array of inexpensive disks (RAID), etc.Content management system100 can store content items using one or more partition types, such as FAT, FAT32, NTFS, EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, ReiserFS, BTRFS, and so forth.
• Data store118 can also store metadata describing content items, content item types, and the relationship of content items to various accounts, folders, collections, or groups. The metadata for a content item can be stored as part of the content item and/or can be stored separately. Metadata can be store in an object-oriented database, a relational database, a file system, or any other collection of data. In one variation, each content item stored indata store118 can be assigned a system-wide unique identifier.
• Data store118 can decrease the amount of storage space required by identifying duplicate files or duplicate chunks of files. Instead of storing multiple copies,data store118 can store a single copy of afile134 and then use a pointer or other mechanism to link the duplicates to the single copy. Similarly,data store118 can storefiles134 more efficiently, as well as provide the ability to undo operations, by using a file version control that tracks changes to files, different versions of files (including diverging version trees), and a change history. The change history can include a set of changes that, when applied to the original file version, produce the changed file version.
• Content management system100 can be configured to support automatic synchronization of content from one or more client devices102. The synchronization can be platform independent. That is, the content can be synchronized across multiple client devices102 of varying type, capabilities, operating systems, etc. For example,client device102acan include client software, which synchronizes, via asynchronization module122 atcontent management system100, content in client device102 file system108 with the content in an associated user account. In some cases, the client software can synchronize any changes to content in a designated folder and its sub-folders, such as new, deleted, modified, copied, or moved files or folders. In one example of client software that integrates with an existing content management application, a user can manipulate content directly in a local folder, while a background process monitors the local folder for changes and synchronizes those changes tocontent management system100. In some embodiments, a background process can identify content that has been updated atcontent management system100 and synchronize those changes to the local folder. The client software can provide notifications of synchronization operations, and can provide indications of content statuses directly within the content management application. Sometimes client device102 may not have a network connection available. In this scenario, the client software can monitor the linked folder for file changes and queue those changes for later synchronization tocontent management system100 when a network connection is available. Similarly, a user can manually stop or pause synchronization withcontent management system100.
• A user can also view or manipulate content via a web interface generated and served byuser interface module104. For example, the user can navigate in a web browser to a web address provided bycontent management system100. Changes or updates to content in thedata store118 made through the web interface, such as uploading a new version of a file, can be propagated back to other client devices102 associated with the user's account. For example, multiple client devices102, each with their own client software, can be associated with a single account and files in the account can be synchronized between each of the multiple client devices102.
• Content management system100 can includesharing module126 for managing sharing content and/or collections of content publicly or privately.Sharing module126 may manage sharing independently or in conjunction with counterpart sharing module (e.g.,152aand152b). Sharing content publicly can include making the content item and/or the collection accessible from any computing device in network communication withcontent management system100. Sharing content privately can include linking a content item and/or a collection indata store118 with two or more user accounts so that each user account has access to the content item. The sharing can be performed in a platform independent manner. That is, the content can be shared across multiple client devices102 of varying type, capabilities, operating systems, etc. The content can also be shared across varying types of user accounts. In particular, thesharing module126 can be used with thecollections module124 to allow sharing of a virtual collection with another user or user account. A virtual collection may be a grouping of content identifiers that may be stored in various locations within file system of client device102 and/or stored remotely atcontent management system100.
• The virtual collection for an account with a file storage service is a grouping of one or more identifiers for content items (e.g., identifying content items in storage). An example of virtual collections is described in provided in U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/750,791, entitled “Presenting Content Items in a Collections View,” filed on Jan. 9, 2013, and herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. The virtual collection is created with thecollection module124 by selecting from existing content items stored and/or managed by the file storage service and associating the existing content items within data storage (e.g., associating storage locations, content identifiers, or addresses of stored content items) with the virtual collection. By associating existing content items with the virtual collection, a content item can be designated as part of the virtual collection without having to store (e.g., copy and paste the content item file to a directory) the content item in another location within data storage in order to place the content item in the collection.
• In some embodiments,content management system100 can be configured to maintain a content directory or a database table/entity for content items where each entry or row identifies the location of each content item indata store118. In some embodiments, a unique or a nearly unique content identifier may be stored for each content item stored in thedata store118.
• Metadata can be stored for each content item. For example, metadata can include a content path that can be used to identify the content item. The content path can include the name of the content item and a folder hierarchy associated with the content item (e.g., the path for storage locally within a client device102). In another example, the content path can include a folder or path of folders in which the content item is placed as well as the name of the content item.Content management system100 can use the content path to present the content items in the appropriate folder hierarchy in a user interface with a traditional hierarchy view. A content pointer that identifies the location of the content item indata store118 can also be stored with the content identifier. For example, the content pointer can include the exact storage address of the content item in memory. In some embodiments, the content pointer can point to multiple locations, each of which contains a portion of the content item.
• In addition to a content path and content pointer, a content item entry/database table row in a content item database entity can also include a user account identifier that identifies the user account that has access to the content item. In some embodiments, multiple user account identifiers can be associated with a single content entry indicating that the content item has shared access by the multiple user accounts.
• To share a content item privately,sharing module126 can be configured to add a user account identifier to the content entry or database table row associated with the content item, thus granting the added user account access to the content item.Sharing module126 can also be configured to remove user account identifiers from a content entry or database table rows to restrict a user account's access to the content item. Thesharing module126 may also be used to add and remove user account identifiers to a database table for virtual collections.
• To share content publicly,sharing module126 can be configured to generate a custom network address, such as a uniform resource locator (URL), which allows any web browser to access the content incontent management system100 without any authentication. To accomplish this, sharingmodule126 can be configured to include content identification data in the generated URL, which can later be used to properly identify and return the requested content item. For example,sharing module126 can be configured to include the user account identifier and the content path in the generated URL. Upon selection of the URL, the content identification data included in the URL can be transmitted tocontent management system100 which can use the received content identification data to identify the appropriate content entry and return the content item associated with the content entry.
• To share a virtual collection publicly,sharing module126 can be configured to generate a custom network address, such as a uniform resource locator (URL), which allows any web browser to access the content incontent management system100 without any authentication. To accomplish this, sharingmodule126 can be configured to include collection identification data in the generated URL, which can later be used to properly identify and return the requested content item. For example,sharing module126 can be configured to include the user account identifier and the collection identifier in the generated URL. Upon selection of the URL, the content identification data included in the URL can be transmitted tocontent management system100 which can use the received content identification data to identify the appropriate content entry or database row and return the content item associated with the content entry or database row.
• In addition to generating the URL,sharing module126 can also be configured to record that a URL to the content item has been created. In some embodiments, the content entry associated with a content item can include a URL flag indicating whether a URL to the content item has been created. For example, the URL flag can be a Boolean value initially set to 0 or false to indicate that a URL to the content item has not been created.Sharing module126 can be configured to change the value of the flag to 1 or true after generating a URL to the content item.
• In some embodiments,sharing module126 can also be configured to deactivate a generated URL. For example, each content entry can also include a URL active flag indicating whether the content should be returned in response to a request from the generated URL. For example,sharing module126 can be configured to only return a content item requested by a generated link if the URL active flag is set to 1 or true. Changing the value of the URL active flag or Boolean value can easily restrict access to a content item or a collection for which a URL has been generated. This allows a user to restrict access to the shared content item without having to move the content item or delete the generated URL. Likewise,sharing module126 can reactivate the URL by again changing the value of the URL active flag to 1 or true. A user can thus easily restore access to the content item without the need to generate a new URL.
• FIG. 2 is an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.Flowchart200 describes a dropsite, in particular managing content contributed to the dropsite. Content management application114 of client device102 may expose the functionality of sharingmodules126 and/or152 to provide the dropsite. Instead or in addition,web browser116aand116b(collectively116) may be used to display a web page front end for a client application that can providecontent management100 functionality exposed/provided withcontent management interface104 and sharingmodules126 and/or152.Sharing module126 may manage the dropsite for shared content either independently or in conjunction with sharingmodules152aand/or152b(collectively152). Requests made from device102 using the user interface of content management application114 and/or web browser116 for access and/or inclusion of a content item in the shared folder may be handled by sharingmodules126 and/or152. The content item may be associated with the shared folder, such as to indicate inclusion of the content item in the shared folder, provided the content item meets predefined criteria established for the shared folder, including, but not limited to, creation of the content item within a geographical area and a particular span of time.
• Continuing with reference toFIG. 2, information may be received containing a location and a date and a time of creation of a content item (202). Content items may be images, documents, messages, videos, SMS messages, emails, feeds, tweets, and/or any other data that may be created using the content management application114 and/or third-party applications on device102. Information on the location, date and time of creation may be received and used as criteria for inclusion or exclusion of a content item from the shared folder. For example, metadata having creation location and date/time information may be stored with image files or documents as attributes with values that may be retrieved and used to determine whether the content item may be part of the shared folder. Metadata associated with the content item (e.g., geographic location and date and time of its creation), metadata from the device, metadata provided by third-party application, and/or metadata provided by thecontent management system100 on the content item may, for example, all be used as criteria for access, inclusion, and/or exclusion of the content item in the shared folder.
• Thecontent management system100 and/or third party applications may obtain and/or generate the geographic location and/or date and time of creation information for the content item. Software applications, including, but not limited to, cameras, mail applications, social networking applications, editors, and/or any other type of application capable of creating the content item may provide the metadata for the content item. For example, an application may provide for geotagging to assign geographical location identification metadata to the content item.
• In some embodiments, content management application114 may obtain the location and/or the time and the date for the device102 at the time of creation of the content item, either with the content management application service or a third party application, and may provide the information with the request to include the content item and/or provide metadata for storage as metadata with the stored content item. For example, content management application114 may be operative on the device at the time of capture of the content item, in which case the system time of the device may be used as the time/date information for the content item. Content management application114 may associate metadata with the content item, send the metadata, and/or otherwise communicate the metadata with the content item to the sharingmodules126 and/or152. For example, content management application114 may utilize location based services and/or location aware services of the device to determine location information for the content item.
• Location information may include latitude and longitude coordinates, altitude, bearing, heading, distance, accuracy data, place names, neighborhood names, and any other data that indicates a location. The location information for the content item may be obtained through location-based services and/or location-aware services of the device, Wi-Fi crowd-sourcing, Global Positioning Services (GPS), cellular networks, any other service or mechanism for determining the location, and/or combination thereof. The date and the time information may be obtained from the device system time, a wireless service carrier, GPS, internet time services, and/or any other time source.
• An association of the content item with a shared folder may be permitted upon determination that the date and the time is within a predefined span of time and the location is within a predefined geographical area for the shared folder (204). The content item may be associated with the shared folder to indicate or designate that the content item is included in the shared folder. By way of example, the content item may be associated with the shared folder by storing a reference or a pointer to content item in thedata store118 with an identifier for the shared folder, by storing the content item in a particular directory for the shared folder, and/or any other method or data structure for grouping content items in the shared folder.
• Eligibility for inclusion in the shared folder may be determined by using the received creation information (e.g., creation date and time and creation location metadata) for the content item and comparing the information to predefined thresholds, bounded areas, limits, value ranges, time spans, value ranges, and/or any other definition for metadata values. The creation metadata may be within predefined thresholds, limits, fall within a value range, and/or time span to match inclusion criteria and be eligible for inclusion in the shared folder. For example, the creation date and time of the content item may fall within the predefined time span (e.g., a week, a particular day, particular times, and/or any other measure of time) and the location at creation may need to be near or within a threshold distance (e.g., 15 miles) or adjacent set of areas (e.g., metropolitan Chicago, Paris' banlieues) from the predefined geographical area for the content item to be eligible for inclusion in the shared folder. If the received creation date and time metadata is within the predefined date and time span and the location is within the predefined geographical area, then the content item is eligible to be associated with the shared folder. In some embodiments, content items permitted to be uploaded may be designated within a device user interface as being eligible for upload. Permitted content items may be uploaded to the content management system and stored as part of the shared folder.
• Default predefined criteria definitions (e.g., thresholds, limits, spans, ranges, geographical area, and any other definition) may be provided and/or defined by a dropsite owner. For example, a dropsite owner may be affiliated with a given geographical area (e.g., owner, manager of a stadium, park, tourist bureau, etc.), an event planner, and/or any other user desiring to create a dropsite. The dropsite owner may pay for the space within the content management system for storing content items for the dropsite.
• The predefined criteria definitions may be associated with a dropsite/shared folder identifier and retrieved from thedata store118 using the dropsite/shared folder identifier. The predefined geographical area may be a defined bounded geographical area or region. By way of example, the area may be defined with coordinates (e.g., latitude and longitude) for a center point and a span in latitudinal and longitudinal directions from the center point for the bounded area. In another example, the geographical area may be circular, semi-circular, elliptical, and/or any other shape with a center point and a defined radius and/or radii, or other locus of points satisfying some condition from or relative to the center point to form a bounded region. In yet another example, the dropsite can be defined in terms of political or municipal boundaries. The dropsite owner may define the geographical area by providing coordinate values for a center point and distances from the center point, pinpoint the geographic area using a map application that may generate center coordinates and distances extending out from the coordinates, and/or provide a name for venue, part of town, neighborhood, street names, park names, and/or any other name to retrieve a predefined geographical area.
• In some embodiments, particular geographical areas used for a dropsite may be reserved for property owners and/or the government. In such cases, the dropsite owner may need to be authorized to associate the geographical area with the dropsite. For example, a dropsite owner may need to be authorized to create a dropsite for a monument, a stadium, a park, and/or property that is not owned by the dropsite owner.
• Although examples are provided throughout this description for various inclusion criteria for content items in a shared folder in terms of location and date/time, those with skill in the art will recognize that there are other criteria and/or metadata that may be used to determine eligibility for a shared folder according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention.
• FIG. 3 is an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.Flowchart300 illustrates exemplary steps involved in discovery of dropsites. With reference thereto, information on a location of a device may be received (302). Such location information may include latitude and longitude coordinates, for the approximate position of the device, for example. Location information for the device may be determined using crowd-sourced Wi-Fi, GPS, cellular networks, and/or any combination thereof to determine the approximate location for the device.
• With the location information, a determination can be made as to whether the device is near or within a predefined geographical area for a shared folder (304). The predefined geographical area may be registered with a service to monitor the geographical area and determine whether the device is moved near or within the predefined geographical area. The service may be provided by a third party application, the content management application, and/or any other application. The service may continually monitor the geographical location to determine whether a device has entered or come near the area and log the movement of the device and/or the corresponding account using the device that came into or near the predefined geographical area. The device may need to be a threshold distance from the predefined geographical area to allow for discovery of a device. The dropsite owner may specify a threshold distance from the predefined geographical area and/or any other location. If the device location information indicates that the device is within a threshold distance and/or within the predefined geographical area, then the service monitoring the area may indicate the movement into or near the area.
• A notification for the shared folder is sent to the device based on the determination (306). If the device is near or within the predefined geographical area for the shared folder, then the notification may be sent to the device to allow for discovery and/or publication of the shared folder with the device. The notification of the events may be text, images, and/or any other representation for the dropsite. Notifications may be pushed and/or pulled to the device in accordance with user settings and/or other settings for the content management application. In some embodiments, the content management application may be executing on the device and notifications may be pushed to the device. If the shared folder is public, then the shared folder may be accessible with the device. In some embodiments, a defined set of authenticated accounts, devices, and/or users may be permitted to discover particular shared folders. In yet other embodiments, the shared folder may be open and accessible to the public, and then subsequently limited to authorized accounts, and/or devices that entered or came near the predefined geographical area.
• Although a particular examples are provided for determining a device location, defining a geographical area, and monitoring the area for devices, those with skill in the art will recognize that many methods, steps, mechanisms, and software libraries (e.g., IOS developer library) for determining the device location, defining the geographical area, and monitoring the predefined geographical area for devices that come near or within the predefined area.
• FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary flowchart for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.Flowchart400 illustrates steps in providing a dropsite. Initially, a request may be received to access a shared folder (402) The request may be received at thecontent management system100 from a device using the content management application114. A determination may then be made on eligibility for access to the shared folder (404). There are a number of criteria that may be used to determine if a device and/or an account are eligible for access to the shared folder. For example, if the device is near or within the predefined area, has previously been near or within the predefined area, has previously accessed the shared folder, then the device may be permitted for use to access the shared folder. In another example, if an authenticated account is eligible to access the shared folder, then the authenticated account may access the shared folder. Alternatively, if the device and/or account are not eligible, then the process ends.
• Continuing withFIG. 4, a determination is made as to whether to organize content (406). Organization may be desired if an organized view of the experience is desired (e.g., a timeline view, etc.). A user may want to view a particular part of a venue at a particular time. For example, the user may desire to view the halftime show at a game. In another example, a user may desire to view current cocktails or dishes of the day at a restaurant that remain available, or images of the shoe rack at a store as it changes throughout a span of time for a day or a particular sale. Continuing with the examples, as dishes, cocktails, and shoes sold out, the user could keep track and have an accurate view of the availability for such items throughout the day and/or sale. If organization of content is desired (406), then accessible content items are organized (408), and organized accessible content items are sent to the device (410). Organization of accessible content items is described in detail inFIG. 5. Alternatively, if organization of content is not desired (406), then accessible content items are sent to the device (410). A user may desire a random view of the content items at the dropsite, and not desire organization. Accessible content items (410) may be accessed, viewed, modified, viewed, and/or locally stored on the device depending on permission set on the content items.
• In some embodiments, content items from the shared folder may be desired to be stored locally on the device. For example, a user may request that the most popular ten content items for a shared folder be pushed to their device and stored locally. The content management system may continually update content items stored on the device. In another example, a user may request that content items from a predefined location within the predefined geographical area be stored locally on the device. Continuing with the example, the user may request the most popular, the most viewed, and/or any other criteria for the content items for storage locally on their device.
• A request may be received to upload a content item to the shared folder (412). The location and date and time for creation of the content item may be determined (414). Upon determination that the date and the time is within a predefined range of time and the location is within a predefined geographical areas for the shared folder, upload of the content item may be permitted (416).
• FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flowchart for dropsite functionality in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.Flowchart500 illustrates exemplary steps for organizing the shared folder and generating statistics for the shared content. Initially a determination is made as to whether to cluster content items (502). If clustering is desired (502), then accessible content items in the shared folder may be clustered (504). Content items may be clustered together in groups by time, locations within the predefined geographic area, popularity of content items, face recognition, metadata of content items, and/or any other conditions or affinities that may be found between content items. Examples of conditions and affinities are provided in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/888,003, entitled “Shuffle Algorithm and Navigation,” filed May 6, 2013, claiming the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/800,039, entitled “Shuffle Algorithm and Navigation,” filed on Mar. 15, 2013, and both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. For example, content items may be clustered by time and locations within the predefined geographical area for the shared directory.
• Content items that were created at the same time within the predefined geographical area may be grouped together and viewed as a grouping within the shared folder. Continuing with the example, by clustering content items (e.g., images) by location and time, a user can view the experience at the dropsite geographical area as it unfolds over time. The content items may be further clustered to group content items together that were created at locations within the predefined geographical area. Geographical coordinates for particular locations within a geographical area may be stored and associated with a name of the particular location. If the creation location (e.g., coordinates) of a content item fall within a predefined location of a predefined geographical area (e.g., falls within defined coordinates for the halftime stage at a stadium). By way of example, content items created near a halftime stage at a stadium may be grouped together and stored as being created at the halftime stage, and content items created near the concession stands may be grouped together. After clustering is performed, the process continues. Alternatively, if clustering is not desired (502), then the process continues.
• Continuing withFIG. 5, a determination is made as to whether stitching of content items is desired (506). Stitching is the combination of multiple images with overlapping fields of view to produce a segmented panorama and/or a high resolution image. If stitching is desired (506), then a determination is made as to which content items from the shared folder are to be stitched together (508). Content items may be selected for stitching based upon matching features found in the images, images captured at locations separated by a distance that is below or at a particular threshold, images captured at times that are within a defined range of time, user selected content items, and/or any other criteria for selecting content items for stitching. For example, stitching can be performed with content items at a predefined location (e.g., location with camera oriented to capture half time stage) within a predefined geographical area, and using the location, orientation, and image data, images can be stitched together from one or more users to create a 360 degree view. In some embodiments, a user may select images and/or rules for stitching images. For example, the user may indicate a desire for images to be stitched together at a particular location by selecting the option to stitch together images at particular locations via the user interface. Default rules for stitching may be provided and/or a dropsite owner may indicate what stitching for particular locations and/or times are desired. Alternatively, if stitching is not desired at506, then the process continues directly to512.
• Continuing withFIG. 5, a determination is made as to whether to generate statistics (512). If generation of statistics is desired (512), then statistics are created and recorded at514. Statistics on popularity of content items, predefined locations within a predefined geographic area with the most content items captured or created, and/or any other statistics on content items may here be generated, for example. Histograms may be generated from the statistical data to provide a visualization of the data for the dropsite owner. In this way a dropsite owner may review data on the bulk of the activity at the event based on content items submitted to the dropsite. Following statistical generation at514, process flow may end. Alternatively, if statistics are not desired at512, then the process ends directly therefrom.
• FIG. 6A is an exemplary schematic representation for storage of data for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.
• One or more database entities can be used to store content items, shared data, dropsite shared folder data, attribute information, and/or metadata withindata store118 ofFIG. 1, for example. In a relational database, an entity may be a database table or view. In an object database, the entity may map to an object class. The database table may be represented with columns that are fields for the database table and rows that represent the records of the database table. Each row or record in the database table may have one or more values for the database fields of the database table. Although examples provided throughout may refer to an entity as a database table, those skilled in the art will recognize that there are various ways an entity of a database design may be implemented.
• SharedTable600 is a database table for content items in dropsite shared folders stored withindata store118.SharedTable600 may have the following database fields, for example:content sharer604, shareditem606, sharedfolder608,location609,timestamp610, active612, and viewed614.Sharing module152 and126 may be used to associate a shared folder and one or more shared items to create shared folders for dropsites. For example, a new row may be created when a new content item is shared and populated with values forcontent sharer604, shareditem606, and sharedfolder608 fields. The sharedfolder608 may be a designated shared folder for a dropsite.
• A user with an authenticated account or eligible device (e.g., based on location and time) may request to view a particular dropsite shared folder, and in response, a query is executed against the database to select content items in a shared folder (e.g., rows in sharedTable600) where sharedfolder field608 has the value for the particular shared folder identifier for a dropsite. The shared folder identifier may be an identifier for an album, a virtual collection, a lightweight share, and/or any other identifier for a grouping of one or more content items used for the dropsite. An album may be a group of content items stored within a folder or a directory on file system of client device102 and/or stored remotely atcontent management system100.
• A lightweight share, akin to a virtual collection, may be a grouping of content identifiers that may be stored in various locations within file system of client device102 and/or stored remotely atcontent management system100. With the lightweight share identifier, all of the content items associated with the lightweight share identifier (e.g., stored with lightweight share identifier in data store) may be retrieved.
• A sharing filter may be applied to retrieve a shared folder of content items for a dropsite using an authenticated account and/or eligible device (e.g., device eligible to upload content items due to presence near or within predefined geographical area during predefined timespan) from data storage. For example, shared folder may be retrieved from the database by executing a query against the database to retrieve a sharedfolder608 that has a value with the shared folder identifier for a dropsite. The results from executing the query to select all rows fromsharedTable600 with a value of or associated with the shared folder identifier for a dropsite may be used to retrieve shared items for the dropsite. Asharer field604 may have values for a user account identifier, an account identifier associated with a third party application, and/or any other identifier for an account permitted to share content for the dropsite.
• By way of example, to apply a filter to retrieve shared content for shared folder identifier of “folder1,” a query may be executed against the database for the shared folder identifier of “folder1,” and three content items atrows616,618, and619 may be retrieved for “folder1.” As shown inrow616 ofsharedTable600,sharer604 with a user account identifier “userId1” has an active content share as denoted with a “1”/True value in active612 field. The active content share for the shared folder ofrow616 has a shared item with identifier “Item100b.” The shared item is not viewed as denoted by viewed614 flag set to “0”/False inrow616. Thetimestamp610 may indicate a creation date for the shared content item and thelocation609 may have coordinates for the location at creation of the content item. Thetimestamp610 may indicate a date within the predefined timespan (e.g.,field TimeAndDate654 of DropsiteTable603) for the dropsite, as described in detail below withFIG. 6B. Thelocation609 may have coordinates that are within the predefined geographical area (e.g.,field Geographic Area652 of DropsiteTable603) for the dropsite, as described in detail below withFIG. 6B.
• Continuing with the retrieval of shared content example for shared folder of “folder1,” as shown withrow618 ofsharedTable600 with user account identifier “userId2” has a shareditem606 of “Item200b” that is currently active612 as indicated by “1”/True value foractive flag612 inrow618. Row619 ofsharedTable600 with user account identifier “userId1” has a shareditem606 “Item100a” is currently not active612 and not viewed614. Each row of sharedTable600 (e.g.,rows616,618, and619) was eligible and uploaded for shared folder “Folder1” of the dropsite ofrow644 of theDropsiteTable603, as described in detail below withFIG. 6B.
• ContentltemTable602 is a database table for content items stored withindata store118.ContentltemTable602 has database fields depicted as follows:userId620,contentItemId622,originalContenItemId624,currentSynchCopy626,active flag628,deviceId630,revision632, andcontent pointer634.ContentltemTable602 may remotely store content items that are both synchronized and unsynchronized content items stored locally on a device. As shown inrow636, contentItemId “200b” is the current synchronized copy as denoted with “1/True” withfield currentSynchCopy626. Instead, contentItemId “200b” is a locally stored version on device with identifier “mobile1” as denoted inDeviceld630 field. Alternatively, as shown inrow638, version withcontentItemId622 identifier “100b” is the current synchronized copy as denoted by “1/True” in thecurrentSynchCopy626 field. Inrow640, an inactive content item version withcontentItemId622 “100a” is provided.
• ContentltemTable602 may also provide information on related content items. For example, as shown inrows638 and640, content items withcontentItemId622 100a-b are related because each has originalContentId “100.” Content items may be selectively synchronized from a client device to the shared folder of a dropsite. If synchronization is desired, then an update and/or modification to a content item shared with the dropsite shared folder may be reflected. For example, a user may have removed red eye from an image content item (e.g., content item with contentItemId “100a”) shared with the shared folder of the dropsite, and the update to the image may be reflected as a new version of the content item (e.g., content item with contentItemId “100b”) that may be selectively provided to local folders of users that have saved the content item locally on their client device.
• An index may be created for a database column or field of a database table to optimize the retrieval of data. In a preferred embodiment, use of the index may allow for retrieval of data without a full scan of a database table and/or a full scan of data accessible. Indexes may be created for the entire database column (e.g. for all data rows) and/or for a portion of the database column (e.g. a subset of data rows). For example, the index may be created for a subset of values for a column of a database table that are for a particular shared folder of a dropsite.
• A database cursor may be used to keep track of the current state for content items locally stored on a client device within the file system of the client device and/or cache of the client device. For example, the database cursor may point to a row in a database for a shared folder at particular point in time that is currently stored within a cache on a client device. With knowledge of the cached version, updates to the content content items of the shared folder can be sent to the client device.
• Those with skill in the art will recognize thatsharedTable600 andcontentItemTable602 are meant to illustrate an exemplary storage mechanism where content in shared folders of a dropsite and other metadata associated with content items of shared folders may be stored and modified.
• FIG. 6B is an exemplary schematic representation for storage of data for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.DropsiteTable603 is a database table for defining dropsite shared folders stored withindata store118.DropsiteTable603 may have database fields as follows, for example: sharedfolder650,geographic area652, time anddate654, current656, active658,ownerId660, and public662. Row644 provides a definition for sharedfolder650 “Folder1” created by owner withowner Id660 “userId1” withGeographic area652 defined with “AreaCoordinatesA” andTimeAndDate654 range for the shared folder of “08:00:00 to 24:00:00 May 15, 2012.” The bounded geographic area may be defined with coordinates for a center point and a radius distance around the center point to form a circular bounded area.
• FIG. 7 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.User interface700 displays representative images for two example dropsites: “Hack Week”702 and “Bay Bridge Festival”704.
• FIG. 8 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. User interface800 displays content items within shared folder for dropsite “Hack Week”802 with clusters of images for predefined locations within the predefined geographic area for the dropsite: “Lounge”804 and “Conference Room”806. Photos may be added to the shared folder by capturing the image usinguser control808 and/or added to the shared folder withuser control810.
• FIG. 9 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.User interface900 for selecting photos as denoted by the title “Select Photos”902. Theuser interface900 allows for selection of twoimages906 and908 that are eligible to be uploaded in accordance with the creation metadata for the images.Image906 is selected and a request to upload the image may be requested withuser control904.
• FIG. 10 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.User interface1000 shows the status of uploading with thestatus bar1002.
• FIG. 11 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. User interface1100 provides a way for creating a dropsite. Aname1104 for the dropsite may be input atinput text box1104 for dropsite at location name intext box1102 of “4^thand Townsend St.” The dropsite has atext box1106 for privacy with an inputted value of “Open to anyone nearby” and a predefined time range input of “08:00:00-12:00:00 May 15, 2012” at input box1112. The bounded geographic area is defined by placing acircular area1108 on the map.
• FIG. 12 is an exemplary user interface for a dropsite for shared content in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.User interface1200 provides a dropsite with images clustered bytime1202 and1204 that are stitched together.
• Exemplary Implementations
• Any suitable programming language can be used to implement the routines of particular embodiments including, but not limited to, the following: C, C++, Java, JavaScript, Python, Ruby, CoffeeScript, assembly language, etc. Different programming techniques can be employed such as procedural or object oriented. The routines can execute on a single processing device or multiple processors. Although the steps, operations, or computations may be presented in a specific order, this order may be changed in different particular embodiments. In some particular embodiments, multiple steps shown as sequential in this specification can be performed at the same time
• Particular embodiments may be implemented in a computer-readable storage device or non-transitory computer readable medium for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, system, or device. Particular embodiments can be implemented in the form of control logic in software or hardware or a combination of both. The control logic, when executed by one or more processors, may be operable to perform that which is described in particular embodiments.
• Particular embodiments may be implemented by using a programmed general purpose digital computer, by using application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic devices, field programmable gate arrays, optical, chemical, biological, quantum or nanoengineered systems, components and mechanisms may be used. In general, the functions of particular embodiments can be achieved by any means as is known in the art. Distributed, networked systems, components, and/or circuits can be used. Communication, or transfer, of data may be wired, wireless, or by any other means.
• It will also be appreciated that one or more of the elements depicted in the drawings/figures can also be implemented in a more separated or integrated manner, or even removed or rendered as inoperable in certain cases, as is useful in accordance with a particular application. It is also within the spirit and scope to implement a program or code that can be stored in a machine-readable medium, such as a storage device, to permit a computer to perform any of the methods described above.
• As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, “a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
• While there have been described methods for dropsite for shared content thereof, it is to be understood that many changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, no known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements. The described embodiments of the invention are presented for the purpose of illustration and not of limitation.

Claims (28)

1. A method for a providing a shared folder in a content management system, comprising:

receiving information on a creation location and a date and time of creation of a content item;

determining if (i) the date and time of creation is within a predefined span of time, and (ii) the creation location is within a predefined geographical area; and

permitting association of the content item with a shared folder whose inclusion criteria match said date and time and the creation location.

2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the content item is at least one of a video, an image, an audio recording, a message, and a document.

3. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

storing an association of the shared folder with the predefined geographical area and the predefined span of time in a data store;

sending a notification for the shared folder to a device, upon determination that the device is within or near the predefined geographical area;

receiving an upload of the content item; and

providing, upon request using the device, access to the shared folder and content items associated with the shared folder for display on the device.

4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the shared folder is at least one of a publicly available folder, a folder accessible by a defined set of users, and a folder accessible by at least one authenticated account.

5. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

stitching together a plurality of images from the shared folder to create a panoramic view of at least one location within the predefined geographical area; and

providing, upon request, said stitched images for display on a device.

6. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

clustering content items from the shared folder by at least one of a time, a number of views, a number of comments, a number of interactions with content items, and a particular location within the predefined geographical area associated with the content item; and

providing a cluster of content items for display on a device.

7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the content item is captured with a camera of a user device, and wherein metadata is stored with the content item as to the location and the date and time of its creation.

8. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

providing statistics to a user on content items in the shared folder by at least one of a time, a location within the predefined area, a number of interactions with said content items, and a type of interaction with said content items.

9. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

providing selective synchronization of at least one content item in the shared folder with a folder stored locally on the device.

10. The method ofclaim 5, further comprising:

stitching together said plurality of images from the shared folder captured at the at least one location within the predefined geographical area and at a particular date and time.

11. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request to synchronize at least one content item from a cluster of content items in a shared folder to a folder locally on a device;

providing the at least one content item in the shared folder with the folder to the device,

wherein the cluster comprises a set of content items grouped together based on at least one of a particular time and a particular location within the predefined geographical area.

12. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising:

receiving a notification on a device regarding the shared folder for content items created within or near the predefined geographical area maintained by a system; and

sending the content item to the system for inclusion in the shared folder upon determining that (i) the date and time of creation of the content item is within the predefined span of time and (ii) the creation location of the content item is within the predefined geographical area.

13. The method ofclaim 12, further comprising:

causing triggering information on a current location of the device to be sent to the system, wherein the current location is within or near the predefined geographical area for the shared folder;

sending a request to access the content item from the shared folder; and

receiving the at least one content item at the device from the system.

14. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, cause the computing device to:

receive information on a creation location and a date and time of creation of a content item;

determine if (i) the date and time of creation is within a predefined span of time, and (ii) the creation location is within a predefined geographical area; and

permit association of the content item with a shared folder whose inclusion criteria match said date and time and geographic location.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, wherein the content item is at least one of a video, an image, an audio recording, a message, and a document.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

store an association of the shared folder with the predefined geographical area and the predefined span of time in a data store;

send a notification for the shared folder to a device, upon determination that the device is within or near the predefined geographical area;

receive an upload of the content item; and

provide, upon request using the device, access to the shared folder and content items associated with the shared folder for display on the device.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, wherein the shared folder is at least one of a publicly available folder, a folder accessible by a defined set of users, and a folder accessible by at least one authenticated account.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

stitch together a plurality of images from the shared folder to create a panoramic view of at least one location within the predefined geographical area; and

provide, upon request, said stitched images for display on a device.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

cluster content items from the shared folder by at least one of a time, a number of views, a number of comments, a number of interactions with content items, and a particular location within the predefined geographical area associated with the content item; and

provide a cluster of content items for display on a device.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, wherein the content item is captured with a camera of a user device, and wherein metadata is stored with the content item as to the location and the date and time of its creation.

21. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

provide statistics to a user on content items in the shared folder by at least one of a time, a location within the predefined area, a number of interactions with said content items, and a type of interaction with said content items.

22. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 14, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

provide selective synchronization of at least one content item in the shared folder with a folder stored locally on the device.

23. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 18, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

stitch together said plurality of images from the shared folder captured at the at least one location within the predefined geographical area and at a particular date and time.

24. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 17, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

receive a request to synchronize at least one content item from a cluster of content items in a shared folder to a folder locally on a device;

provide the at least one content item in the shared folder with the folder to the device,

wherein the cluster comprises a set of content items grouped together based on at least one of a particular time and a particular location within the predefined geographical area.

25. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, cause the computing device to:

receive a notification on a device regarding a shared folder for content items created within or near a predefined geographical area maintained by a system; and

send a content item to the system for inclusion in the shared folder upon determining that (i) a date and time of creation of the content item is within a predefined span of time and (ii) a creation location of the content item is within the predefined geographical area.

26. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 25, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, further cause the computing device to:

cause triggering information on a current location of the device to be sent to the system, wherein the current location is within or near the predefined geographical area for the shared folder;

send a request to access the content item from the shared folder; and

receive the at least one content item at the device from the system.

27. A system for a dropsite, the system comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory containing instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to:

receive information on a creation location and a date and time of creation of a content item;

determine if (i) the date and time of creation is within a predefined span of time, and (ii) the creation location is within a predefined geographical area; and

permit association of the content item with a shared folder whose inclusion criteria match said date and time and the creation location.

28. The system for a dropsite ofclaim 27, wherein said memory contains further instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to:

store an association of the shared folder with the predefined geographical area and the predefined span of time in a data store;

send a notification for the shared folder to a device, upon determination that the device is within or near the predefined geographical area;

receive an upload of the content item; and

provide, upon request using the device, access to the shared folder and content items associated with the shared folder for display on the device.

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